Abington haunted house adds terrifying new attraction

For 22 years, Barrett’s Haunted Mansion has been sending even the bravest of thrill-seekers running away screaming after Mary Barrett-Costello, a fan of all things horror, convinced her father to turn an empty house on the property into a haunted mansion.

By Edward Donga

The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA

By Edward Donga

Posted Oct. 24, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 24, 2013 at 10:09 AM

By Edward Donga

Posted Oct. 24, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 24, 2013 at 10:09 AM

» Social News

You’re trapped in the bar-filled maze of what was once a prison. A thick fog has crept into the winding halls, and you can barely see the path in front of you.

You turn the corner as you try to make your way out, but suddenly a shrieking zombie prisoner clanging against the bars sends you running back the way you came, only now your path is blocked by a lumbering zombie prison guard.

Welcome to The Cell, the newest attraction at Barrett’s Haunted Mansion in Abington.

“I’ve never jumped so high in my life,” said Ron Marshalsea, 15, of Norwood, as he exited the maze.

Marshalsea and a group of boys he was with unanimously agreed that the attraction was terrifying, and compared the maze to AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” a television show that chronicles the experiences of a group of survivors in a zombie apocalypse.

“Unless they (the zombies) help you out, you can be in there for a long time,” said Mary Barrett-Costello, the woman behind the terror at the haunted house.

For 22 years, Barrett’s Haunted Mansion has been sending even the bravest of thrill-seekers running away screaming after Barrett-Costello, a fan of all things horror, convinced her father to turn an empty house on the property into a haunted mansion.

Barrett-Costello said process begins in March when she visits a haunted house show in St. Louis. When she returns, she begins meeting with her staff to start planning the haunted house, which changes every year.

This year, visitors to the mansion can find themselves in Alice’s warped Wonderland, or a grisly butcher shop, among other scenes of horror - if they’re brave enough to make it to the ticket line first.

“I heard this ungodly screaming,” said Barrett-Costello, describing a man in his mid-40s who was scared by a monster in the haunted pumpkin patch while waiting in line for tickets.

“He was here for an hour and 45 minutes trying to get up enough nerve to go into either The Cell or the house, and he didn’t go into either,” she said.

For those who do make it into the haunted house, there will be about 30 monsters waiting for them. In The Cell, the number is closer to 10.

On a trip through both buildings, even Barrett-Costello jumped in fright a few times at her own creation.

“I know where everything is, but it’s the unexpected,” said Barrett-Costello. “I mean, nothing scares me more than when something shows up that I don’t expect to be there.”

For visitors to the haunted house, the frights can be that much worse.

“I was screaming 'mommy,' ” said Miah Shostek, 12, of Sharon upon exiting the haunted house.